Portrait Of A Family
by queenconniebee
Summary: Co-written with Georgy-Girl. A Connie/Jacob story, inspired by the 2016 Summer Trailer. Death, panic, fear... Is love really able to conquer all?
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: Neither author claims to own Casualty, or any of the plots or characters in this story.**

 _Please review, and enjoy :) x_

* * *

When Connie arrived at work on Monday morning, the place was already over-run with patients. Sighing, she glanced longingly back at her car before walking through the front door.

"What's going on?" She snapped at a passing nurse who looked startled before he finally stuttered a reply.

"St J-James is diverting everyone here, and we're short staffed."

Connie shut her eyes momentarily as she shed the last of the happiness she'd felt from spending all Sunday with Grace. "Ok, I'll sort out the staffing issue and speak to St James'. And just because we're busy, does not mean leaving your uniform in that state is acceptable!"

As Connie stalked away, the nurse looked down with dismay. He hadn't even noticed the blood that covered his top. It was going to be one of those days.

...

Inside her office, Connie looked at the staff rota and then began calling her staff, hoping she wouldn't have to resort to calling an agency; those nurses were always more trouble than they were worth. She left one name until last, unwilling to call him unless the situation was desperate. Unfortunately for her, it was.

"Hello?" Jacob answered just has Connie was about to give up.

"Ah… Good morning. I was just wondering if you'd be able to come in? St James' are diverting patients, the department is a mess, and-"

"And you need my help?" Jacob interrupted.

Connie was silent for a few seconds before she swallowed. "Yes. I need your help."

Jacob looked down at the invitation that lay on his bed next to a black suit. 4pm. He'd been trying to talk himself into going to the funeral all morning, but here was a solution: he could tell his mother he was needed at work. "Okay. I'll be there in fifteen and I'm expecting at least a smile for getting you out of a hole, Queen Bee."

When Jacob hung up, Connie finally allowed a slight smile pull at her lips. Between them, they'd be able to sort out the department.

...

"So where d'you want me, sweet cheeks?"

Her head turned sharply when she heard his voice, and her expression softened visibly from one of stress and agitation as he walked purposefully into resus fifteen minutes after she had called.

"Okay, this is Katy, suspected fracture to the left tib, and multiple head lacerations. She's had morphine, but she needs..."

"X-Ray. I've got it, I'll call you back when they're done."

She paused momentarily, a thank-you wavering on her lips before the doors opened and another young girl was wheeled in.

"Bella!"

"No, no Katy you need to lie back down, she's in good hands." Jacob quickly moved to coax Katy back down, looking to Connie as he did so.

"She's my sister! Bella..." She looked to Jacob, her eyes frantic. The other girl was covered in blood and she was unconscious, and he saw how Connie's face fell as she saw her, and how young she was.

"Right, on three..." She could barely hear Iain's voice, she could only see how the girl's chest barely rose or fell, and how she was so unresponsive to her surroundings.

"Mrs Beauchamp?"

"Iain, I'm coming... Can you just..." Jacob gestured to another nurse to stay with Katy, before moving quickly to assist Iain. He stood next to Connie, and gently touched his hand to hers, where it gripped the cold metal of the bed.

"Con..." He spoke softly, and her eyes turned to look to his.


	2. Chapter 2

She held eye contact with him only momentarily before she looked away, barking orders at those around her. Jacob squeezed her hand and then stepped away before he began doing as she asked, but it was this tender gesture after all she'd done to him that made Connie change her mind. "Actually, Dylan you take over here. I need to be out there trying to shift some of this backlog."

As Connie went to slip from the room, she glanced back at Jacob to see him offer her a gentle smile. Though she smiled back, his eyes were already back on the girl in front of him.

...

"Call for you on line 2, Mrs Beauchamp!" Noel called when she strode past him a short while later.

With a tut, she just held out her hand for the phone. "Connie Beauchamp."

"I'm so sorry to call, I know you must be awfully busy-" A voice came down the line.

"I am. Who is this?" Connie questioned sharply.

"...No one. Sorry for wasting your time."

The voice went to hang up, but hesitated when Connie offered, "It will be even more of a waste if you don't tell me why you wanted to speak to me."

"Well, I... He'll be annoyed with me for calling you, but you are the only person he's mentioned and I wasn't sure where else to begin. I'm looking for Jacob. Jacob Masters. He was supposed to meet me at the train station a short while ago, but he didn't arrive and his phone is switched off."

She paused, irritated and confused. He had told this person about her?

"Who is this calling?" She heard a sigh on the other line before the woman spoke again.

"It's his mother."

She couldn't deny the empty, sick feeling that had now quickly occupied her stomach. She motioned to the receptionist that she was taking the call to her office, her heels clicking quickly as she tried to recover herself. She wasn't aware that Jacob had told her anything about their relationship, he knew that neither of her parents were alive and when they were together he had expressed no intention of bringing her to meet his family.

"I'll pass on the message, I'm sure he'll call you back when we're less busy."

"Look, I know that you're his boss..."

"He's not available at the moment."

"You don't understand..."

"I'm sorry, but we're short staffed and I'm not going to pull him away from a patient, in an _emergency_ department, just because he forgot you were going out. I'll tell him to..."

"It's his brother's funeral." The woman spoke quietly, but Connie heard her, and her eyes immediately turned in the direction of resus, from where she stood in the centre of her office.


	3. Chapter 3

At that moment Jacob pushed through the doors, determination written on his face as he walked towards the nurses' station to the girl's parents.

"I'm so sorry for your loss… He hasn't mentioned it, but I will make sure he gets there. What time is it starting?" Connie questioned, pen poised before she took the details of the time and place of the funeral. As she wrote, her eyes watched Jacob as he made the difficult phone call, and she suddenly realised he looked tired. In fact, he'd looked tired all last week, but she'd purposefully tried not to notice it. "Was it sudden?"

"He was in a car accident last week. The doctors thought he would come round, I told Jacob not to come… But he passed away on Saturday evening." Jacob's mother replied softly.

Connie remembered her mobile ringing on Saturday, and flicking through her phone she found Jacob's number in the call log. "I'll make sure Jacob is there."

"Thank you. I really am sorry for calling you, he is always telling me about how busy the department is, but the way he talked about you... Well, I thought you'd be able to talk him into coming."

Connie signalled to Jacob to come in her office before he headed back to resus as she once more offered her condolences before ending the call.

He looked around him, to see if there was any patient in dire need of his attention. He didn't particularly want to be alone with her in the office, not now. He looked at the watch on his shirt, and then back to Connie, who stood looking directly at him, one hand holding her mobile and the other holding a bulkier contraption, one of reception's.

She signalled to him again; eventually he walked through to her office but purposefully left the door open and stood at a distance. She put the phones down on the desk and folded her arms in front of her chest, before thinking otherwise and pushing one into her fringe, the other resting on the desk behind her.

She then brought her head up to look at him, and on looking closer at her expression she saw she was upset, her eyes were wide and her nose was a little red, her freckles becoming more prominent across it. He stepped forward to touch her arm, and she gently brushed it away, but took it from the desk and rested her fingers on his before looking at him, seeing how pained he was, and drawing back.

"Jacob..."

"What's happening, Con?"

She looked into his eyes again, and then down to the floor.

"Close the door."

"No, I..."

"I had a phone call. Jacob, please..."

"Who from?"

This time she initiated the contact, touching her fingers lightly to his, again looking at the floor.

"Why are you here?" She spoke softly, nearly a whisper, and felt his fingers tense and squeeze hers.

"Mum?"

"Yeah."

She heard his breath catch in his throat, and felt her arm drop back to her side as he moved back to close the door.


	4. Chapter 4

The door clicked gently as it shut, but Jacob offered no words and instead sat quietly on the sofa.

"Jacob." His name came out so softly and with so much emotion that Jacob shut his eyes so he wouldn't have to see how she was looking at him.

"You said you needed me. The department is short staffed, and-" Jacob attempted.

"This place doesn't need you as much as your mother seems to, Jacob. You need to go and be with your family." Connie replied.

"...I can't." Jacob admitted so quietly that Connie didn't hear but only saw his lips move. "I can't do it. I didn't even say goodbye."

As Connie stepped forward, about to pull him into her arms, there was a knock on the door and a moment later Lily pushed her head into the room. "Sorry to interrupt, Mrs Beauchamp, but you're needed in resus."

"Can you lot not deal with things alone for five minutes?!" Connie snapped, making Lily look shocked.

"Sorry, I-" she began.

As Connie went to snap at her again, Jacob stood up and she grabbed his arm, trying to catch his eye." Not you. Stay in here, I won't be long."

...

"She's gone into VF, we're losing output!"

Lily pushed the doors open as Cal spoke, Connie following through behind her. Her eyes were pulled immediately to the bay where the little girl was lying, surrounded by doctors, nurses and bleeping machines. She tried to summon what she could of her professional integrity, to make it override the desperate intention of returning to Jacob, and so stepping forward she pushed past Cal and took charge.

Ten minutes later, every attempt to resuscitate had failed, and she could do it no longer. She looked to Cal, a definite lump forming in her throat, her eyes prickling, the monotonous and consistent bleep ringing in her ears. She stood back from the bed, and blew out a long breath, feeling a light hand at her shoulder as she was told there was nothing more she could have done. She shrugged it off, and walked from the room, only to turn straight into Jacob.

He caught her arms, and looked down at her as she looked up at him, her eyes telling him all he needed to know. She motioned for them to go back to her office and once inside, he pulled her straight to him and held her as tears shook her frame, his own threatening to spill from where they collected in the inner corners of his eyes.


	5. Chapter 5

"You did everything you could. It wasn't your fault, no one could have saved her." Jacob whispered gently in his ear, cursing himself silently for the surge of happiness he felt having her in his arms after so long.

Connie nodded against him, but gave no reply, her fingers digging in to his arms as she held onto him tightly, willing him to make it better. To make it okay. It was when Jacob dropped a gentle kiss to her forehead that Connie looked up, her teary eyes dropping from Jacob's to look at his lips. However, as he whispered her name and moved his lips closer, the door flew open to present Elle, apparently oblivious to the situation she'd walked into.

"There you are! I cannot believe you've come into work, today of all days. We need to get going. Your mother called me just now and I agreed to drive you down there."

As Elle spoke, Connie drew away from Jacob and fixed her face before sitting at her desk as though nothing had happened. She felt a surge of smugness when she realised that Jacob's mother must have called her before she called Elle.

"I'm not going. I can't. He'd understand. He knows my job here is important," Jacob replied quietly, moving to sit on the sofa as he glanced towards Connie, amazed she seemed so adept at hiding her emotions while everyone seemed to know exactly how he was feeling.

"You NEED to go. Are you telling me that your job here is more important than your own brother?!" Elle raised her voice.

"Elle..."

"No, Jacob! It isn't more important, not today."

Connie watched as he looked from Elle to her, and she folded her arms before turning on the other woman.

"Dr. Gardner, will you wait outside for a moment please. I understand that this is a difficult time, but this is not helping."

"Connie..."

"Elle, please." Jacob spoke, and Elle walked angrily from the room, yet knew that if anyone could convince him to go then it would be Connie. There was more to their relationship than Jacob had let on, she could see that for herself quite clearly.

Connie moved from behind her desk to sit on the sofa next to Jacob. He watched her silently before bringing a hand to her head, brushing her fringe gently away from her eyes, before he lowered his hand and sighed, running his hands over his face.

"I can't... I can't go."

"I really think..."

"I know. I know what everyone else thinks, Con. I don't know what _I_ think, I wasn't..." She lowered her head and tried to keep herself together as she heard the struggle in his voice. "I wasn't there."


	6. Chapter 6

"You can be there for him now, Jacob." Connie offered softly. When she heard the hitch in his breath, she added, "I'll come."

Jacob lifted his head, looking at the woman in front of him with a slight frown. "You'll come?"

"If it will help you, I'll come." Connie repeated, risking a glance up at Jacob who still stared at her.

"...What about the department? It's snowed under and it's a mess."

"You're more important to me right now." Connie kept her eyes glued to the floor, for she'd never admitted even to herself that Jacob was important to her.

Jacob let out a long breath, studying the brunette's face as it masked any feeling from being seen. "You'd have to deal with Elle all evening."

"Then I'll deal with Elle all evening." Connie replied immediately, lifting her head this time to make eye contact so Jacob would know she was both serious and sure.

Jacob nodded his head, looking a little impressed before he finally gave a reply, "You being there would make it bearable."

When he spoke, she couldn't, try as she might, stop the corners of her mouth from turning upwards a little.

"Okay. I'll let Rita know that you've got permission to leave, and I'll go and find Dylan and ask him to call an agency. We'll manage."

"Connie, I..."

"It's okay." In response, he placed his hand on top of hers, before getting up off the sofa and making his way to the door.

"I'll need to, um, go home..." He thought of the suit that was laid out, and he took another deep breath before looking at Connie.

"So do I. We can... We can take the car, I'll park it somewhere and then we can walk in, if you'd prefer..." She trailed off, uncertain of whether this was something he would be comfortable with, considering the considerable time they had spent apart recently and the occasion.

"I think I would." He spoke quietly, but gave a slight, grateful smile which she returned, before he sighed and pulled on the door handle. "I'll go and... Tell Elle. She can go and meet Mum, we'll see them there."

"Okay."

"Are you sure, Con?"

"I'm sure. You'd do it for me." She offered quietly, busying herself taking off her stethoscope and looking for her bag.

"I'd do anything for you, you know that." Jacob replied just as quietly before slipping from the room.

Connie took a deep breath, shutting her eyes for a moment to ready herself for the evening ahead. Finally, feeling a little more in control, she stalked from her office to find Rita.


	7. Chapter 7

They met by her car five minutes later and sat in awkward silence on the drive towards Jacob's house. Unable to stand it any longer, Connie cleared her throat and glanced sideways at the man beside her. "You go in and get your suit and then you can get changed at mine while I pick something."

"I don't know, Con. Us getting dressed in the same building hasn't gone very well in the past, has it?" Jacob had a teasing edge to his voice that made Connie smile. This was the Jacob she recognised and knew how to deal with.

"I thought it usually went quite well, actually, but I do agree that it's never gone in our favour when we're in a rush."

Jacob smiled as they pulled up outside his place. "Quite well? I only get a 'quite well'? I'll leave you here to consider that statement and how much quite well might hurt my delicate ego."

"You have a lot of things, Jacob, but a delicate ego is not one of them." Connie replied smartly, smiling to herself as she watched Jacob saunter towards the house. She knew he was putting on an act, she knew he was hurting, but quiet Jacob made her want to make everything right in the world for him, and she wasn't used to feeling that way.

He returned five minutes later, having already had everything in one place during his time of deliberation earlier in the day.

"You know..." He sat uncomfortably next to her, his suit folded over in the carrier on his knee. "Your car is quite ridiculously unpractical."

She glanced over at him as she indicated, before returning to look directly ahead at the road.

"It was practical."

"Hm?" He looked sideways again, to see her jaw tense noticeably.

"Grace was in America, no significant other..."

"Con, I'm sorry, I..."

"Don't be. It's fine." She felt his hand rest on her knee and she couldn't help but feel more relaxed, no matter how much she told herself that they couldn't do this. They drove the way to her house in silence, both of them remembering the countless times they had done this journey before, under circumstances so far from the ones they were currently subjected to.

"Right." She stopped the car, and they sat a little awkwardly before she opened the door and went to the house. "I'll go and change, you can, um..." She paused, uncertain of where exactly she was going to suggest. "Oh, just come upstairs. But behave."

He gave a low nod in response, before following her into the house. It smelled of her, and he looked around him to see all of the little quirks which he had missed so much: the slight tilt of the painting in the hallway because Grace had once knocked the hook it hung on and she had never had the time to fix it, the candles which only he would ever light, the coffee table in the living room, covered with its usual spread of paperwork and Grace's magazines. His thoughts were interrupted by a gentle cough, and he turned around to see her standing on the stairs, a smile toying at her features.


	8. Chapter 8

Smiling back, Jacob followed her up to the stairs in silence but stopped at the top. "The guest room?"

Connie hesitated and then shook her head. "My room. Grace doesn't go in there, so if you leave something-"

"She won't see it?" Jacob finished for her, his voice sharper than it had been in weeks.

"Jacob-" Connie attempted, though unsure what she would say. Thankfully, he interrupted her.

"It's fine. Your room it is." He walked past her, his suit hanging over his arm before he lay it on the bed, much as he had done in his own room.

Taking a deep breath, Connie followed him into the room. Whatever was going on in their relationship, or lack of, she needed to push it to the back of her mind and just be supportive. She walked to her wardrobe and pulled it open, raising her eyebrow when she heard a chuckle from Jacob. "Something funny?"

"You open those doors like they're going to reveal Narnia or the crown jewels. So dramatic!"

"Get dressed and stop teasing, Staff Nurse Masters." Connie replied, pulling out the black dress she'd had in mind.

He made his way to the ensuite, thinking it would probably be less awkward for the both of them if he made the decision. That way, she had pretty much everything she needed in there with her anyway. He closed his eyes, his back resting against the door, before inhaling deeply and taking the suit from the carrier.

He finished changing, and decided to wait a few minutes before knocking to see if she was ready for him to come back through.

"You know, you don't have to hide in there."

He heard her voice from the room only a few moments later and he smiled to himself before opening the door to see her stood in front of her mirror. He watched her as she tied her hair loosely behind her back, before turning to face him.

"Would you mind...?" She twisted slightly to reveal a delicate clip at the neck of her dress, and he came to stand behind her as his fingers secured it, aware of how much smaller she was than him without her heels, and of how she held her breath and looked down as he touched her skin.

"All done." He spoke softly, and her eyes flickered up to meet his in the mirror before she turned, his hands catching hers before she made to move away.

"You're beautiful." He couldn't stop himself, but it didn't feel uncomfortable for either of them. Any words she was going to say were lost, there was so much care and intimacy in his to make her chest ache with longing, and sadness.

"We should go."

She looked down again, seeing how he held her hands in his. She gently released hers and he took a step back, edging towards the door.


	9. Chapter 9

It took almost an hour to get there, Connie cursing the traffic, but Jacob sat in silence staring out the window, and Connie felt she should leave him to his thoughts.

Jacob was trying to focus on his brother and what he would say to his family, but the only thing he seemed able to keep in his mind was the image of Connie's face earlier, when she realised she'd lost the girl in resus. She was hurting, and here he was making her go to a funeral that would probably remind her of all the girls she'd lost over the years. Especially when she saw his brother's daughter, the same age as Grace and, he'd heard, still wheelchair bound from being in the car accident with her father.

"Connie?"

Jacob's voice suddenly broke the silence, and when she glanced at him she found he was watching her. "Mm?"

"I know this is...I don't know...wrong, maybe...and I don't want you to feel like you should do it because of where we're going, but…" Jacob attempted, the words falling out of his mouth before he'd had chance to think them through.

"But?" Connie questioned when nothing more was forthcoming.

"I want to kiss you." Jacob offered gently.

She turned to look at him, her breath shaking as she inhaled, her mouth slightly parted.

"I'm sorry, I'm..." He shook his head as he spoke and turned back to the window, looking out at the trees that framed the car park she had chosen. Her hand touched his arm lightly but he didn't respond, and she closed her eyes momentarily.

"Jacob... It's not, it's not because I don't want to. I..." She took another breath, took her hand to his face and turned his head gently to look at her. "I can't lose her, Jacob."

He took her hand, and placed it back down on her knee. He looked back out of the window and she took the keys from the ignition, aware that the time in which they had spent in traffic had cost them.

"He would have been glad that you were here."

"You told your brother about me?"

"No, but..." He paused, before looking at her, noticing how the green of her eyes never disconnected from the brown of his. "I just know he would have liked you."

"If he was anything like you, I think I would have liked him, too. Come on. We can do this." Connie offered a smile before she stepped from the car.

Climbing out, Jacob took a deep breath and straightened his tie. If he could stand up to Connie Beauchamp and make her smile, he could do this. He could do this. "I can't do this."

His head turned to Connie, panicked, but rather than replying, she simply slid her hand into his and began walking towards the sea of people, leaving him no choice but to follow along behind her. She kept her grip tight until Jacob was spotted and drawn into a throng of family members outside the church. Then, she'd slid her hand from his, and when he turned to glance at her, she just gave an encouraging smile.

"You managed to get him here, then." A voice spoke from behind Connie, and when she turned she found Elle offering what could be a welcoming smile. "You do know how to make him do what you want, I'll give you that."

Connie gave a tight smile in return, but her face paled and her stomach dropped when a passer-by pushed the memory book into her hand. Joseph Masters was Jacob's twin.


	10. Chapter 10

"Connie?" Her head snapped around as she heard another woman's voice say her name. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to make you jump..."

"Oh, no it's okay. I just..." She trailed off, at a loss for words. She glanced over to where Jacob was, talking with a group of men a few metres away, and then turned back to his mother. "I didn't... I didn't know." She gestured to the book, and lowered her head before once more glancing over to him.

"He's a surprisingly private person." His mother spoke softly, and Connie gave a nod in response. "Connie... I just, I just wanted to say... Elle said you can work magic on him. Thank you."

"He needed to be here. I think he knew that, really." His mother smiled sadly in reply, before moving to stand with another group of people, leaving Connie and Elle standing together.

"You know..." Elle looked over to Jacob and back to Connie, who too seemed unable to distract her gaze from him for seconds at a time. "You mean a lot to him. He's not... He isn't someone who takes kindly to letting people help him."

"He's struggling." Connie could barely hear herself over the talk of other people, and Elle moved closer, touching her hand to Connie's arm; to her surprise, it was not instantly dismissed.

"I'm glad you came with him."

"Elle, I..." Connie began, suddenly on the verge of telling her everything. About Grace, about Jacob, about how she felt, but before she could Elle too was drawn into the crowd. She seemed to fit in so well and everyone seemed to know her, and it made Connie feel even more uncomfortable. As her eyes scanned for Jacob, a girl struggling on crutches caught her eye. She too was stood apart from the crowd, watching them with disdain. Connie felt herself levitating towards the girl, slightly younger yet so similar to Grace.

The girl glanced at Connie when she stopped beside her before looking back at the crowd. "How can they all look so happy? Don't they know what today is? We're saying goodbye, and goodbye is always sad."

"I think everyone here is sad, but for today, they want to celebrate Joseph's life and everything he did." Connie replied hesitantly.

The girl turned to glance at her again. "Who are you, anyway?"

"I'm...I..." Connie didn't know who she was. Here, she wasn't head of an emergency department, she wasn't a doctor, she wasn't Grace's mother.

 _So who was she?_

"I'm..."

"Have you got amnesia?" The girl asked curiously.

Connie smiled at this. "I'm a friend of Jacob's."

"Are you Connie?" The girl asked curiously. "I'm Mia. Jacob said you helped him pick out a necklace for my birthday." She pulled the necklace out to show her. "It's my favourite. He normally gets me something pink, or a toy. He still thinks I'm about three!" Mia was glad to have something else to talk about, for she hated thinking about her father and the fact she would never see him again.


	11. Chapter 11

She could remember the day they had gone to buy the present, which had been followed by dinner at hers, and then... She felt a lump form in her throat as the girl continued to chat away about Jacob, how he was her favourite uncle, and how she loved coming to visit him in Holby, and how maybe Connie would like to join them next time. She had more ease to conversation than her own daughter, but she had a similar maturity and level of knowing beyond her years.

"Can we sit down? Grandma said we would have to wait for some time yet before we go in, and..." She gestured downwards, before looking back to Connie, who helped her to a bench around the back of the building, the hubbub of talk dying away.

"I have a daughter, she's a little older than you. She's called Grace."

"That's a nice name. You have a nice name too."

Connie gave a soft laugh, and looked down to the side to see the little girl who looked up at her. She was dressed in a simple, black dress with black patent shoes, and wore a thin black ribbon in her hair. She had a large boot on one of her legs, and Connie could see her wince every so often. Mia noticed her concerned looks, and leant backwards into the bench.

"I didn't want to come in the wheelchair. It hurts but I can manage."

Tears pricked at Connie's eyes, and she turned her head so that Mia wouldn't see. This little girl had lost her father, and she hadn't mentioned her mother, only her Grandma. She took a deep breath before looking back at her, and the little girl gave a sad smile before reaching to touch her fingers to Connie's hair.

"I'll have to tell Uncle Jacob that I agree."

"What do you mean?" Connie gave another soft laugh as she watched the little girl stroke strands of her hair between her fingers.

"You are very, very pretty."

As Connie opened her mouth to reply, a familiar laugh came from in front of them. "I think you will find I said she was beautiful, short-stuff. How's my favourite girl?" Jacob squatted in front of them, smiling up at the girl who threw herself forward to hug him. He hugged her back just as tightly, his eyes shutting for a moment before they looked up at Connie. He was looking at her as though he needed something, but she didn't know what it was.

"Do you think Connie will let me try on her high heels when my leg is better?" Mia whispered into Jacob's ear, and another laugh bubbled from his lips, a sound that made Connie's heart soar.

"I think you'll have to ask her yourself, because I've yet to meet anyone who's allowed to even touch them!" Jacob pulled back from Mia and tucked her hair behind her ear. "How are you feeling?"

"Good!" Mia replied, despite the fact she'd just told Connie her leg was causing her pain.

"Well, you're going to need to be in top form if you're going to sing in front of all the people here!"

Mia's face fell then, and she frantically shook her head. "I can't."

"Grandma told me you wanted to?" Jacob frowned, his hand resting momentarily on Connie's knee to stop himself falling as Mia stood up suddenly.

"Well I changed my mind. My father has died and he's never coming back. You can all be happy and sing if you want, but I have nothing to be happy about! I've lost my mum and my dad, and you don't even want me to live with you, even though you promised I could if anything ever happened to dad!"


	12. Chapter 12

"Mia..."

"No! I'm going to find Grandma." He moved to the side to allow her to pass, his intention to stop her interrupted by Connie's hand pressing on his shoulder.

"Let her go, Jacob."

He looked up at her, before standing and then sitting where Mia had sat moments earlier.

"Mia's mum..." He turned his head to look at Connie as she spoke.

"She died three years ago now. Cancer." He then lowered his eyes to the floor, and felt Connie then lean against him, her head against his shoulder.

"I'm so sorry, Jacob..." She could feel the deep rise and fall of his chest, mimicked in his shoulders, before she sat more upright again and looked out over the trees that surrounded the Church. "Mia's a lovely girl. She loves you."

"Con, she hates me."

"That's not true. She's scared."

"I can't... Of course I want to take her. But I can't, what would I do when I'm working? I don't want her growing up being passed from minder to minder..." He realised what he had said after he had said it, and he reached for Connie's hand and squeezed it, murmuring an apology.

"So you think she's better off with your Mum?"

"I don't know. No, probably not, but what else can I do, Connie?"

She saw how the sadness hung over him, and she desperately wished for things to be different between them. It would be so easy, if only it weren't so complicated. Grace and Mia would have got along so well, and they would have been so happy.

After a few moments silence, Jacob gave a sigh. "We should go inside. The service will start soon." Connie nodded, allowing Jacob to take her hand before she walked a step or two behind him into the church.

...

Once inside, though, she hesitated. She didn't want to sit with Joseph's immediately family in the front row that Jacob was leading her towards, yet wen Jacob sat, the family silently made room for her as if she belonged there. Soon, her free hand was taken by Mia as she sat beside her, and for once in her life Connie began to feel accepted and necessary in a role other than as a doctor.

The service was unlike one she'd been to before, involving so much happy celebration and singing, but throughout it all both Mia and Jacob sat in silence, so she did as well. She could feel that ever muscle in Jacob's body was tense, and he almost vibrated with emotion as he stared straight ahead.

Connie kept glancing at Jacob's profile, almost willing him to cry. She knew he wanted to, but he didn't seem to be able to get the tears to begin. It was when she lifted their joined hands to her lips and dropped a gentle kiss to his knuckles that she saw his face crumble.


	13. Chapter 13

She watched as his mother went up to the platform, and then listened to her voice as she spoke about Joseph, the words blurring together as her vision did, her fingers still firmly intertwined in Jacob's. She saw out of her peripheral vision that Mia had begun to shudder as she cried, and she gently put an arm around the little girl who gratefully leant into her side.

"I have to go up." She turned her head to him, they were so close that his lips touched the loose hair that fell in front of her ears. "I'm doing the second eulogy." Her eyes met his, and he suddenly felt filled with more courage than he had had at any other point during the evening. She brought their hands to her lips again, and he looked at her, at the tears tipping over her cheekbones and rolling to her jaw, which he brushed away with gentle fingers before he rose from his seat.

He walked up to the platform, and saw how Mia now took Connie's hand, the two of them looking up at him as he spoke. He focused directly on Connie, and she looked back at him with her beautiful green eyes, a hand occasionally going to her fringe to brush the hairs from her eyes which smarted with tears. He then looked to his mother as he spoke his last few sentences, before exhaling a long, shaky breath and returning back to his seat.

"Perfect." Connie whispered to him, her hand slipping into his once more as though it belonged there.

...

An hour later, Connie waited by the car, having guiltily left Jacob to say goodbye to Mia alone, unable to take the girls tears after a day full of such strong emotion. She found herself looking at the photo of Jacob and Joseph together that she'd been given and wondering how she'd feel if something happened to Jacob. In such a short time, he'd come to mean so much to her, and the thought of him no longer being around made her feel vulnerable.

"Ready to go, Queen Bee?" Jacob asked, the light-hearted tone back in his voice, though Connie knew instantly it was being put on.

In silence she reached out and drew Jacob towards her, and when he frowned and opened his mouth, she put a finger to his lips. A moment later, she replaced that finger with her own lips, kissing him gently. The sort of kiss he'd spent weeks thinking about.

Jacob's hands rested on the small of Connie's back and drew her closer, held on to her almost too tightly as their lips were finally forced to separate by his tears, As Jacob buried his face into her hair and cried, Connie stroked the back of his head, offering all the reassurance she could.

"You were perfect in there, he would have been so proud. I was proud." She paused, closing her eyes momentarily before speaking in a soft whisper, " love you, Jacob."

She hadn't intended to say those words, and now she stiffened in his arms, wondering if he'd heard. He made no move away from her, but she kept still, her fingers continuing to caress his head until his tears lessened and he pressed his lips shakily, but tenderly to her neck.

"I don't want to go back." It was a whisper, and although his face was buried in her hair, he heard her. He closed his eyes, and made small circular motions with his fingers on her back.

"We can't just do this for one night, Connie. I can't... I can't do that." He straightened his arms to hold her so that he could see her face, see how she struggled to find it within herself to tell him that they had to go back to how things were before, because of Grace.

"Jacob-"

"I love you." He spoke softly, a single tear working its way from the corner of his eye down to the side of his nose. She reached up to touch her lips to it, and then to his, before she pulled back to rest her head against his chest, her eyes closed and tears interwoven with the mascara on her lashes.

"You know..." He paused, looking down at her before continuing, his voice low but levelled. "Sometimes, we hide everything we're really feeling from the people who probably need to know what it is we're feeling the most." She turned her head upwards, Grace's words repeating themselves in her head.

"I can't go back to her tonight, Jacob."

As his thumb brushed a tear from her cheek, Jacob replied, "And I can't do just one night."

"...I'll talk to her. Somehow I will get her to see that she won't lose out by us being together-" Connie began, talking breathlessly.

Jacob didn't know if she would, but he allowed himself to believe her. For tonight, he'd imagine that it would be okay so he could get the comfort he so craved.


	14. Chapter 14

"I'll be home by the time you finish school tomorrow, sweetheart. I'll come and pick you up, if you like, and we can go and get something to eat?"

"I still don't see why you had to be the one to go." Grace grumbled, sick of being at her grandmother's house already.

"Zoe just needed someone to talk to." Connie lied, shutting her eyes tightly, hoping that Grace wouldn't know she was lying. She'd always liked Zoe, and Connie hoped this might make her more accepting of being suddenly left alone.

"...Maybe we can go shopping tomorrow afternoon as well?" Grace asked hopefully.

"If you're good for your grandmother. Look, I need to go, but call me if you need me, okay?" Connie watched as Jacob exited the bathroom, wearing only a towel around his waist.

He had suggested they go back to Holby in the morning because his house was a mess, since the news of Joseph's death he had been taking more shifts at work to avoid spending time alone. Therefore, they had paid for a night in a hotel, half an hour away from the city. Neither of them were particularly concerned about their lack of nightwear, and Connie would have time to change out of yesterday's clothes before she picked Grace up from school, after which she planned to tell her exactly how she felt about Jacob.

On seeing him standing there, in front of her like this, after so long... Despite the emotional pressure of the evening, she now felt more than content. He had stood, holding her for several minutes once they had arrived, the two of them taking the time to assure the other that this was what they both wanted. This had been followed by several more minutes of furious love and passion, the time in which they had spent apart being noted and dutifully erased.

Now, he moved over to where she sat on the bed, her hair now loose and a smile on her face, once more lit with the life that he had noticed missing ever since the accident in the basement.

"Thank you..." He sat beside her, and touched his hand to her cheek, she placed her hand gently over his before removing it from her face, linking their fingers as she did so. "I got through that today because of you, Connie."

He looked into her eyes and she cast them downwards, to then feel her chin being tilted upwards again. His lips descended onto hers, and she wrapped her arms around his neck, and she shifted to sit over him as he twisted her hair in his fingers, promising to himself that he would never let her go again.

...

It was an hour later, when they lay curled up in bed, that Jacob voiced the thought that had refused to go away. "You shouldn't tell Grace."

"Hmm?" Connie lifted her head and rested her chin on Jacob's chest as she looked up at him with a sleepy smile.

"Don't tell her. At least not yet. We will work something out. If she is as temperamental as her mother, telling her to like it or lump it is going to have the wrong effect. We will keep it quiet, and we will think of a way to help her accept it." Jacob decided. He knew how guilty Connie felt about the past, and he knew she could be easily swayed to agree with Grace once more, but after today he wasn't prepared to lose her.

"...You've been thinking about that this whole time?"

Jacob smiled down at the woman in his arms. "Yeah, what have you been thinking about?"

"Dinner." Connie responded with a smile, a laugh escaping her lips as Jacob suddenly flipped them to hover above her.

"In bed with me for the first time in weeks and all you can think about is food?!"

"Yes." Connie replied, laughing again at the expression on Jacob's face. Never before had she met someone who could make her laugh so easily.


	15. Chapter 15

"Open." He chuckled as she took a bite of the pizza from his hand, consciously rubbing at the side of her mouth to remove tomato as she took her wine glass from the bedside table. She was half sat up, the duvet bunched up around her and his arm draped around her shoulders, and every so often she would just look to him and smile, and he would kiss her.

"I think..." She paused, and shifted to face him. "I think I want her to know sooner rather than later, Jacob. Don't look at me like that, I know what you're thinking." He watched her with raised eyebrows, but said nothing. "I want it to be like this, and we can't do that if we 'wait and see.' I'm not going to let her put us through this again, I promise-" She said the last part as a near whisper, and he pressed another kiss to her lips, silencing her.

"I will do whatever you want us to do, sweet cheeks." She smiled at him, albeit unconvincingly, and at this he touched his fingers to her lips and traced their outline. "I know... That it could be difficult. Okay, and I'm prepared for that. God knows, I've had enough practice with you." This time she raised an eyebrow, but she allowed him to continue. "But I am not going to lose you, Connie. Today... I wish Grace could have..." He trailed off, and she took his fingers in hers and interlinked their fingers, as she had done in the Church. "I wish she could have seen how much I needed you."

"I wish she could see how much I need you every day." Connie replied softly. "Today, I was just returning the favour."

...

Though they fell into sleep soon after dinner, Connie was woken a couple of hours later because she felt cold. Her eyelids flickered and she reached out for Jacob, but she found his side empty and so cold he must have departed long ago. Eyes opening quickly, she saw his silhouette in front of the window, his head lowered and his arms folded tightly in front of him.

"Jacob?" Connie questioned softly. When she received no reply, she slipped from the bed and approached him hesitantly. She found him looking down at that same photo that had got her thinking. Two brothers together, laughing.

"Last time we spoke, we argued. Mia wanted to come for the holidays, and I said she couldn't because my place isn't big enough, and he asked me too late to get time off work. Now I'm doing exactly the same thing again. I'm leaving her, making my life more important than her happiness. But you know who encouraged me to take the job in Holby? Joe did. He always encouraged me and supported me, and all I did was tell him no, that I was too busy or that I didn't have the money." Jacob sighed, scrunching the photo up in his hand. "I made the wrong choice. I always make the wrong choice."

Stepping in front of him now, Connie put a hand to either bicep and then ran those hands down his arms, forcing him to relax them and let them unfold. "We're going to make that right. Together. Mia can come and stay at my house, on the weekends at first while she finishes the school year and things settle with Grace, then once everything has calmed down, we can find you a bigger place, or you can move in with me, and Mia can come and stay here. I have childcare sorted for Grace, so it won't be any trouble for Mia to be around, and I can sort a place at Gracie's school. We can sort this Jacob, I promise. You don't need to worry."


	16. Chapter 16

That morning they left, and Connie drove them back to Holby, having already talked to Rita on the phone to arrange cover for Jacob and herself.

"Did you really mean what you said this morning? About Mia?" His hand rested on her knee as she drove, and every so often his fingers would trail circles on her leg, making her shiver.

"Of course I did." She turned to face him, smiling, and he grinned back before turning to look out of the window.

"You know... I don't think she was joking about the heels."

Connie laughed, and indicated to the left as they switched lanes to come off the motorway.

"I'm sure she wasn't. Don't worry, I expect we can sort something out there too." She turned to look at him again, and the way in which he said nothing, but just looked at her, made her head feel a little fuzzy and light. "Stop that."

"Stop what, Queen Bee?"

"Oh, I think you know what. I'm trying to drive. If you want to end up back at the ED before tomorrow then..."

"Am I distracting you?" He winked at her, trailing his fingers around her thigh once more.

"You always distract me. It's very annoying."

"But-"

"But I wouldn't change it for the world."

"Pull over." Jacob motioned to the service lane.

"I can't!"

"Pull over." Jacob repeated.

Connie glanced at him and then finally pulled over to the side of the road, idling the engine. "Wh-" before she could finish even one word, Jacob's lips were on hers, straining it his seatbelt to get closer. Connie gave a gentle moan when he finally pulled away.

"That's all. You can keep going now." Jacob grinned at her and rested back in his seat.

"I will get you for that, Staff Nurse Masters."

...

Connie was thinking about how she'd left Jacob as she waited for Grace to finish school. She'd dropped him off at his home, and then despite her protestations she found herself inside with him, and then in his bed. When she'd snuck away, crumpled clothes gripped to her chest, Jacob was lying in a shaft of late afternoon sunlight, smiling in his sleep.

"Mum! How's Zoe?" Grace asked, interrupting her mother's thoughts.

Connie glanced at her daughter and gave a smile, offering to take the girls backpack as they walked back towards the car. Instead of answering, she asked, "How was school?" Classic avoidance. However, it worked, and it wasn't until they got back home that Grace remembered that her mother had never actually answered her question.

"Mum, is Zoe okay?" Grace sat with her mother in the living room, partly doing homework but mostly playing on her tablet.

"She's fine, Gracie. What are you doing there?" She glanced over at the work her daughter had laid out in front of her on the table, and on seeing an unnecessarily long page of multiplication questions, she decided she didn't want to get involved. At that moment her phone vibrated next to her, at which Grace looked up sharply.

"Who's that? If it's work then I don't want to go to the hospital, I'll stay here."

"Oh no you won't, madam. Anyway, it's not work so you can stay here and finish that, I'll go and find some tea." She got up from her chair, taking her phone with her into the kitchen, and leant at the counter as she pulled the screen down to see her messages. She read it, smiling and undeniably relieved, he wasn't in the slightest bit angry with her for leaving him this afternoon. Instead, it seemed as though they had set up some sort of "I'll get you back" game.

"Mum?"

"Yes, Grace?"

"Can we have pizza?"

Connie sighed, remembering the night before. She typed a quick reply to Jacob before grabbing her keys and putting her head around the doorframe of the living room.

"Pizza it is. I'll be twenty minutes, stay there, don't answer the door, if you need me then ring, okay?"

"Okay, Mum."

...

Ten minutes later, Connie was stood in line waiting to make her order when a hand suddenly touched her waist. Spinning around and intending to snap at whoever it was, Connie found herself face to face with a grinning Jacob. "What are you doing here?!"

"What am I doing here? There are plenty of pizza places closer to your house, but this is the only one near mine." Jacob responded, his smile widening when Connie tutted and faced forward again. "I just thought maybe seeing the box with the name of the place written in big letters might have-"

"Yes, okay, I thought I might see you here, okay?! Stop embarrassing me."

"Nah, Connie Beauchamp doesn't do embarrassment. Large meat lover's, please."

Connie watched with incredulity as Jacob put in his order before her. "I was in front of you!"

"Alright, what would you like, madam?" Jacob questioned, the usual glint finally back in his eye.

"...I haven't decided yet." Connie was forced to admit, earning a laugh from Jacob.


	17. Chapter 17

They stood together at the front of the queue, talking quietly between themselves until they were interrupted by Connie's phone, ringing.

"Oh for goodness' sake, I took the day off and still-" She broke off as she looked at the screen of the phone to see Grace's name and number. She looked quickly up at Jacob, before turning away and answering the call.

"Grace? Gracie?" There was no answer, and Connie felt her stomach give way. "Grace?!"

"Con, what's happening?"

"Grace, what's going on?!" She pressed the phone closer to her ear, willing her daughter to answer. After a few seconds, she heard what she thought was a faint groan, she turned to Jacob, who was holding her steady as she began to visibly descend into panic.

...

"Come on. Keep talking to her." Jacob jumped into gear, leading Connie towards her car that was parked right outside the shop. He pulled the keys from Connie's hand, opening the door for her before he climbed in himself, the tyres screeching as he did a U-turn to head back towards Grace. "Is she still having panic attacks? Has something upset her?" Jacob fired questions at the doctor.

"Sometimes, but not as bad. I don't know. I don't think so. Gracie? Just stay calm, sweetheart. I'm coming, I'm almost there." She listened hopefully for a noise but heard nothing. "Jacob, she's not talking. She's not replying!" Connie cried.

"It's okay, we will be there any second." Jacob tried to reassure her, but Connie continued to panic.

When Jacob pulled up outside the building, Connie was out of the car before it even stopped, rushing towards the front door. "Gracie?!"

She ran through into the living room where she had told Grace to stay, to see her bent double on the sofa, trembling, and her hands placed tightly over her ears. She stood, frozen, feeling Jacob push past her and kneel in front of Grace, taking her hands from her ears and hold her sides as she shook.

"Okay, I'm sure you know all of this Grace, but I need you to breathe. In... And out."

"Jacob, what's happening?!"

"Con, come here. Hold her other side." She did as he told her, bending down in front of her daughter and holding her as she began to take more breaths.

"I... I feel-"

"You don't need to try and talk, sweetheart, okay I'm here. Just keep breathing."

Grace could feel her head start to spin, and her mouth felt dry, and choked. Her entire body trembled and her ears were ringing, the most part of what people were saying to her felt too far away to hear properly. She brought her head up as her chest started to feel less tight, and she struggled to swallow against the feeling of rolls of sandpaper clogging her throat. She looked directly at Jacob, too confused and scared to really process that he was really here, her eyes shutting as she felt her chest constrict again.

"Jacob..." He turned to see Connie, distressed and helpless, as she watched her daughter struggle in front of her.

"Con, listen to me. We need to get it to pass, and go from there. Please, trust me."

Connie looked down at her daughter and then back at Jacob before giving a tiny nod.

"Okay, you remember what we talked about last time? Just copy what I'm doing, okay Grace?"

She nodded, Jacob's calm, even voice getting through to her. Forcing her eyes open, she reached out as she had done the last time and gripped tightly to one of Jacob's shoulders so she could feel when he took a breath in and when he released it. Soon, she began to calm, her body relaxing into her mother's as she coughed.

Smiling, Jacob pushed himself to his feet. "I'll get you some water."

Grace nodded, tears in her eyes as she buried her face into her mother's top. "I'm sorry."

"You have nothing to be sorry about, sweetheart. What happened?" Connie asked gently, her eyes on Jacob as he re-entered the room and held out a glass of water.

Grace took it, sipping a little from the glass in the hope it might stop her throat tickling.

Connie reached out and brushed some tears from her daughter's cheeks. "What happened, Gracie?" She repeated.

Grace looked down at the floor, her breathing still a little shallow and laboured. "You... You left and..." She struggled, and Connie reached under her daughter's hair and brushed her cheeks once more. "I don't know, Mum. Everything just went funny and I started thinking about how... If something did happen then... Then there would be no-one here..." She started crying, and Connie took her into her arms, having difficulty balancing on her knees. Jacob came to sit on the sofa beside Grace, where he could reach Connie and hold Grace at the same time, looking down at Connie's head as she whispered softly to her daughter.

"I'm sorry..." Jacob rubbed her back as she talked to Grace, before she brought her head up to shift Grace back onto the sofa. "I thought you'd be okay on your own here... Gracie, I'm so sorry."

"I thought I would be too." She spoke quietly and a little shakily, she didn't want to admit that she had felt nervous as she had heard her mother's car drive away. She was twelve, not nine, it was silly.

She turned her head as she heard Jacob say her name, and she frowned. "How often does this happen, firecracker?"

"I don't know... This is the worst it's been."

Connie turned to look up at Jacob, but her attention was quickly diverted back to her daughter as she spoke again.

"Why were you with him, Mum?"


	18. Chapter 18

As Connie threw a panicked glance at Jacob, he replied for her. "I guess we both have good taste. We bumped into each other at that new pizza place on the main road."

"...I'm glad you were there." Grace told him softly, her head still resting against her mother's chest.

Jacob and Connie's eyes met over her head and they shared an uneasy smile. "Me too, Grace. How about I go and pick up your pizza for you, and that way your mum can stay here."

Grace nodded, lifting her head only a little to say, "You can have yours here too, if you like."

"I'd like that very much." Jacob replied as he pushed himself to his feet. Though Grace had calmed, the thought of being left alone made Connie herself look panicked. "I won't be long." Jacob added, more for Connie than Grace, his fingers brushing Connie's arm as he walked past.

While he was gone, Connie and Grace sat in complete, calm silence, Connie rocking her daughter gently as she used to when she was a baby. Grace's eyes soon grew heavy and she let out a sigh as she drifted into a nap.

Lifting a hand, Connie brushed tears from her cheeks. She was a big shot doctor who couldn't even deal with her daughter hyperventilating. She was so unused to panicking, and now she'd done it several times in the last two days. Perhaps she wasn't setting the best example for her anxious daughter.

"Right! I've got the pizza and the ice-cream, so I think that means it's movie time. Right, Mrs Beauchamp?" Jacob questioned as he entered, putting the food on the table before he sat beside them on the couch.

"What do you say, Gracie?" Connie asked, her fingers brushing the hem of Jacob's shirt before he fingers gripped it tightly.

"As long as I can pick." Grace pushed herself up.

Relatively quickly, and unsurprisingly, Grace soon fell asleep. Neither Connie nor Jacob were particularly interested in her film of choice, but continued to let it run just in case she did wake, and in case the noise was something that would soothe her.

"I'm just going to go and get a cup of tea. Do you want one?" She whispered across her daughter's head to Jacob, and he smiled, whispering a "please" in reply, and she gently moved from the sofa, taking care to not knock Grace's arm. Jacob looked next to see him to watch Grace as she slept, her hair falling similarly to Connie's did as she slept, and he took a moment to find the same dash of freckles, and the same long eyelashes as her mother had.

"Oh, Grace..." He whispered, and sighed as he shook his head. Now was not the time. He eased himself gently away from her, unaware of how she began to stir and lifted her head slightly to watch him as he made to close the curtains.

"Don't go." He turned around quickly when he heard her, his expression softening as she looked at him, and he moved quickly over to crouch down in front of her, much like Connie had done earlier.

"I'm not going, Grace."

"I don't... I don't want you to go." Her eyes drifted shut and then opened again, and he reached forward to help untangle her from the blanket he and Connie had put over her when she had first drifted off.

"I don't want to go either, firecracker. But I think you know that already, right?"

"You love Mum."

He looked at her, at how her eyes looked down and then back up to him, her tone non-accusatory, softened by sleep and exhaustion. But there was something else too, he wouldn't say acceptance as such, more of an understanding. He heard Connie come through, and quickly place the cups down on the table and crouch down next to Jacob, her hands cupping Grace's cheeks.

"Grace? Are you-"

"I'm fine, Mum." She smiled, and watched as her mother's face visibly relaxed. "I was just talking to Jacob." Connie's head turned to look at him, and he sucked in his cheeks, trying to hide his smile at her confused expression.

"Why don't you have a nice warm cup of tea and then head to bed, firecracker?" Jacob asked with a gentle smile.

She nodded, sitting herself up properly. "But you won't go? You'll be here if it happens again."

"Right here. I'll sleep on the couch, and if you need me, you can come right in and wake me up." Jacob promised, aware that she may still be wary of him staying in the same room as her mother.

"Thanks, Jacob." Grace gave a smile, taking a cup from the table to hold it between her hands. "You're okay. For a nurse."

"Well! I will take that as a compliment and say thank you, Miss Beauchamp!" Jacob pushed himself up and picked up his own cup of tea, a smile still playing on his lips at the expression of shock Connie wore.

The three of them sat together in silence, each thinking their own thoughts, trying to work through their own worries as they nursed the warm tea. Connie kept glancing over at Jacob, wondering what he was thinking after the last few days full of emotions.

"Who's that?" Grace suddenly asked, drawing both adults from their thoughts as she pointed to Jacob's phone, on silent but signalling Mia was calling him.


	19. Chapter 19

"It's..." He looked at Connie, who nodded to him. "I need to take this." He took his his phone and went to stand just outside of the living room, facing the bannister.

"Who is it?" Grace asked her mother, who glanced every so often to the doorway to only see the corner of his shirt.

"It's his niece, Mia. Her dad... Jacob's brother..." She trailed off, uncertain of where this was going to lead. "He died recently." She watched as her daughter's face fell, and she hugged her knees to her chest.

"He didn't say."

Connie put her tea down on the table and brought her daughter to her, holding her as she heads Jacob's low voice talking on the phone.

"Let me speak to Grandma, small-stuff?" There was a pause, and Jacob came into view in the doorway, Connie straightening up as she saw him.

"Yes, I'm with her now, but it's not really..." He saw Connie's eyes widen as she correctly identified the "her" was in fact herself, and he quickly moved back outside the room. Thankfully, Grace had not caught on, but was aware that her mother felt tense next to her.

"Mum?"

"Yes, sweetheart?"

"Are you okay?"

"I'm fine, Gracie." She glanced again outside to the door, before squeezing Grace to her and planting a kiss on her head. "Five minutes, then bedtime."

Grace rolled her eyes, her familiar self swiftly returning. She cuddled into her mother's side, the two of them listening as Jacob's voice began to rise.

They could both hear the anger in his voice, then then suddenly he went quiet, and Connie felt both herself Grace tense when Jacob walked into the room looking apologetic. "I need to go."

"No. You can't. You promised!" Grace pushed herself up.

"What's happened?" Connie questioned, standing up.

Jacob glanced between them before leaving his gaze on Grace. "I'm sorry, Grace, but I really need to go. My niece...she was in an accident a week ago and her...my...she doesn't have anyone else. My mother has been looking after her, but Mia has developed an infection and they've just left her alone at the hospital. She's scared, and I know you know how that feels." Jacob spoke earnestly, hoping she would understand.

"…We'll come. Mum and I will come, too." Grace offered, determined.

"We can't do that, sweetheart. You have school in the morning, I have work…" Connie attempted, though she wanted nothing more than to go to Jacob and pull him close.

"Please, Mum. Jacob knows what to do when it happens...I won't be any trouble, I promise. I'll do whatever you want me to do!" Grace's breathing began to quicken once more.

Connie felt trapped, and she knew Jacob could sense it. She wanted to go, every part of her being told her that. She wanted to see Mia, and comfort her. She wanted to go because that was what Grace wanted, and staying here may make things worse. She wanted to go so that Grace could meet Mia, and Jacob would have her there too. But if they went, Grace would find out that she had lied to her; not to mention the fact that Zoe wasn't even in the country any more.

"Connie-"

"Grace, are you absolutely sure that you feel up to it?" She interrupted him, addressing her daughter directly. Grace was already halfway across the room, but turned back to answer her mother.

"Yes. We have to go." She then went upstairs, and returned five minutes later with her backpack and her coat.

"Thank you, firecracker." Jacob ruffled Grace's hair as he passed her, going to pick up Connie's bag and coat from the hallway. She took her car keys from where she had dropped them on the floor earlier, and went through into the kitchen with the mugs. Grace waited for them at the door, and Jacob quickly followed Connie through into the kitchen, holding her forearms as she looked up at him, evidently nervous. Grace wasn't ready for this.

"Hey, we'll look after her. And she'll get to meet Mia. It's going to be okay, Con." He pressed a quick kiss to her forehead, and she took her things from him before exhaling quickly and following Grace out of the house.

"Con?" He stopped before locking the door, a thought quickly dawning on him. "The car."

"What about it, Jacob?"

"Unpractical."

She looked at him, and then to Grace, who had one hand already on the car door.

"Mum, Jacob can drive me. You take the bike."

"I don't know, Gracie. It's been a long day, and it would be a long drive. I-"

"Elle." Jacob suddenly realised.

"What about Elle?" Connie snapped, regretting it for a moment until she saw the slight smile that her tone brought to Jacob's lips.

"She lives down the road, I'll go and borrow one of her cars. I'll be there and back in 5 minutes, tops." Jacob pulled out his phone to message the doctor.

"How many cars does she have?" Connie mumbled more to herself than to anyone else.

"I'll go with him, you wait here." Grace unceremoniously dumped her bag into Connie's hands, and before she could protest, Grace raced away, one hand holding tightly to Jacob's. Sighing, Connie sat on the front steps, trying to comprehend how her daughter had gone from hating Jacob to trusting him more than she trusted her mother.


	20. Chapter 20

"Really?" Connie asked with a frown as Jacob pulled up in a dirty looking SUV a short while later.

"Come ON, mum!" Grace urged, eager to get going and get away from the house than always seemed to cause her anxiety.

Sighing, Connie slipped into the front seat, passing back both Grace's bag and another smaller bag in which she'd packed several things Grace had grown out of, including a pair of small heels.

Jacob drove the same way that Connie had driven him back this morning, except this time the journey was significantly quicker. They came onto the motorway, leaving Holby behind them, and Grace watched as her mother and Jacob talked between them softly. She noticed how Jacob would often pass seconds just looking at Connie, when she had her head turned out of the window to look up at the stars, and this brought a small smile to her face.

"Jacob?"

"Grace?"

"Is Mia going to be okay?"

Connie turned her head around to look at her daughter, and saw the concern evident on her young features.

"Yeah. Yeah, she will be."

Grace nodded and fell silent, before her mother turned around to her again.

"Are you okay, Gracie?"

Grace nodded, and smiled at her mother, convincing her enough so that she turned back around.

"I've never known her be this quiet, sweet cheeks." Jacob spoke softly, and watched as Connie's eyes looked up into the mirror at the back seat.

"She's just sleepy. It won't last for long, I assure you."

"Just like her mother, then." Jacob smiled, earning a gentle slap on his arm before he glanced up in the mirror. "Grace, if I know Elle, there's probably something you'll like in the seat pocket."

Grace reached forward, and Connie tutted when she took out a celebrity gossip magazine. She never normally allowed Grace to read those, but like everything you banned a child from, they found a way to read it, and Grace and her friends usually spent their whole lunch break talking about what they'd read. "Thanks, Jacob."

...

It was well past midnight when they pulled up outside a large hospital. Grace was asleep in the backseat, and Connie appeared to be sleeping too, so Jacob took the opportunity to just sit in silence for a while, thinking about what had happened in the last few days. So many bad things, but some good as well. Well, one good. He turned to look at Connie, and then glanced in the mirror at Grace. Well, maybe two good things.

"Are we here?" Connie asked sleepily.

"Mm-hmm." Jacob replied, staring up at the hospital in which his niece lay alone and scared.

"Gracie?" Connie had opened the back door of the SUV, and leant across her daughter to undo her seatbelt, before gently touching her fingers to her cheek. "We're here, sweetheart." Her eyes opened and she took a moment, before allowing Connie to help her out to stand in the busy car park.

"Alright?" Jacob came around to touch his fingers to Connie's, before letting go and walking slightly ahead of them to the hospital, Connie and Grace following behind him. Once they were inside, Jacob went straight to the reception desk, and was directed to the lift. He motioned to Connie and Grave to follow him, before turning around sharply as he heard his name.

"Jacob! My man!" A man in a nurses' uniform came up to them, embracing Jacob in a hug before stepping back to look at Connie and Grace.

"This is Stephen, Stephen this is Connie Beauchamp and Grace. My niece is upstairs, we're visiting-"

" _The_ Connie Beauchamp?"

Connie looked at Jacob, eyebrows raised, her arms folded now in front of her.

"Of course, the one and only." He said as he grinned at her, the nurse awkwardly sticking out a hand which Jacob quickly motioned for him to retract.

"Wow, well... I, um, it's a pleasure to meet you."

"Likewise." She replied curtly, looking to Jacob as he struggled to hold back a laugh.

"Um, well I'll let you go on up. Let me know if you need anything, J."

"Will do." He clapped the nurse on the back before turning to Connie, who had already called the lift down.

"Why are you looking at me like that?" He asked, then looked at Grace who laughed as she watched him pull a face at her mother.

"I'm not looking at you like anything. Is there anywhere you can go and not know anyone?" She said, thinking instantly of Elle.

"Well, I can't take you anywhere either. You're practically a celebrity." He winked at Grace, earning another giggle, before the lift dinged and they stepped inside. Jacob took a deep breath as they entered the children's ward, appreciating the fact Connie had silently slipped her hand into his to squeeze it.

"Why don't Grace and I wait out here? We don't want to all go in, especially if she's asleep." Connie offered quietly. Though Grace looked momentarily worried, she nodded when Jacob asked her to look after his coat and was soon following her mother towards a set of uncomfortable looking hospital chairs.

"I'm looking for Mia Masters." Jacob offered the night nurse who pointed him towards a room off to the side.

"We haven't been able to get her to sleep, so I've given her an iPad and some headphones."

"Thanks." Jacob attempted a smile before taking another deep breath. When he glanced back at Connie, he found both Connie and Grace watching him, and both gave him an encouraging smile. Smiling back, a real smile this time, Jacob walked into the dim light of the side room. "Someone call for a nurse?"

"JACOB!"

Both Connie and Grace heard the girl's exclamation, as did the rest of the ward. Jacob approached the bed and pulled Mia into his arms, hugging her tightly. "I couldn't leave you all alone in here, now could I? How's my favourite girl?"

Mia shrugged, pointing down at her leg that was covered in a frame to keep it safe. "It's really sore."

"Have they given you something for the pain?" Jacob frowned, reaching to the end of the bed to look at the patient notes as Mia gave a shrug.

"Have you come to take me home with you?" Mia asked hopefully. "Grandma packed me a bag, I have all my things. Maybe if it's not too late we could go and visit Connie? Do you think she will sign my cast when they put a new one on?"


	21. Chapter 21

"I can't take you tonight, Mia." He watched as her face fell, and he quickly moved to sit on the chair beside the bed, leaning forward to take her hands in his. "But... I do have a surprise for you."

"I don't think I like surprises."

"Oh trust me, small-stuff, you'll love this one. Technically, I have two." Mia tried to look over the bed, to see if Jacob had left anything on the floor.

"There's nothing there!"

He laughed, squeezing her hands in his. "I'm going to be back in less than a minute. Time me." He winked, and left the room to find Connie and Grace, who sat playing I-Spy, Grace becoming increasingly frustrated as her mother constantly guessed wrong.

"Jacob!" She stood up as he came past, and he smiled at her before turning to look at Connie.

"Grace... Would you like to go and see Mia?" Grace nodded, and Connie smiled at her daughter, then nodded to Jacob as he took Grace's hand and led her to Mia's side room.

Both girls looked at each other curiously when Grace walked in. The girl in the bed was a few years younger than she was, and Grace knew how frightening it could be to be left alone when you were young, so with no hesitation, she stepped forward and pulled a toy from the bag she'd carried close since they'd left Holby. "Hi, I'm Grace. I brought you this." She held out the teddy bear that she'd finally picked from her collection.

Mia glanced at Jacob and then reached out for the bear. "Thanks, Grace. I'm Mia."

"What happened to your leg?" Grace asked as she sat on the chair beside the bed. Jacob opened his mouth to remind her not to mention it, as he'd told her on the way to Elle's, but he needn't have worried.

"It got hurt in a car accident, the bone stuck right out! I have pictures on my phone."

Grace wrinkled her nose. "That sounds like it must have hurt."

"It did. Lots. And it still hurts now, but I have a fairy god mother who is going to fix it!"

Grace smiled at this, half wishing she was still young enough to believe in fairy god mothers. "Wow! You're lucky! What's her name?"

"Connie."

When Mia replied, Grace turned to look up at Jacob who was unable to read the expression on her face. "How does she know mum?"

"Uncle Jacob talks about her all the time." Grace turned back to Mia, who beckoned her to come closer. She sat up as much as she could, and tugged at Grace's sleeve to pull her so that she could whisper in her ear. Grace giggled, looking back up to a confused Jacob, who tried as hard as he could to not let the worry show on his face; hoping Mia would not mention that they were together yesterday. They had come so far this evening, he didn't want all of that to fall apart now.

"Where's Mum, Jacob?"

"She's..." He leant back to see through the glass of the door. Sure enough, she was standing just outside, inspecting the ward around her. "Forgetting that she's here as a visitor." He opened the door and took her hand, and she turned in surprise. He simply rolled his eyes at her, and brought her in to stand next to him. She couldn't help but give a small gasp as she saw Mia and Grace together, giggling away, one of Grace's favourite teddies sitting beside Mia's pillow.

"Connie!" Mia turned from Grace to raise her arms excitedly, and Connie stepped quickly over to the bed to embrace the little girl.

"How are you feeling, Mia?"

"My leg hurts. But the doctors say it will get better."

"Do you mind if I have a look?"

"Mum, there are doctors here-"

"I wouldn't waste your breath, Grace." Jacob grinned at the girl who sat beside his niece, a knowing glance passing between them.


	22. Chapter 22

Jacob stood back and watched the scene in front of him, one he still didn't quite believe. Connie was assessing the wound and then reading the notes, a plan formulating in her mind, and Grace and Mia had their heads bent together as they flicked through the photos on Mia's phone. For a moment, Jacob allowed himself to view them all as his unconventional family. This is where he belonged, and he hadn't felt like he belonged in a long time.

"Mia, I'm going to go and talk to your doctor about making you more comfortable, okay?" Connie smiled at the girl in the bed before walking from the room, her heels clicking on the floor as she walked with purpose.

"Woah! Sweet cheeks, it's after midnight, her treating doctor is not going to be around." Jacob pointed out as he rushed after her.

"Then I will wake him up. The pain relief he's giving her is woefully inadequate, and that wound needs debridement. The longer it's left like that, the more likely she is to lose her leg."

"She might lose her leg?" Jacob asked quietly, for the thought had never occurred to him.

Connie stopped then and turned back to Jacob, taking his hands in hers to squeeze them tightly. "That's worst case scenario, and I'm going to make sure that doesn't happen. And if her doctor doesn't agree with me, then...I'll have her moved to Holby."

Jacob smiled at this and released Connie's hands to allow her to continue her march towards the nurses' station.

He returned back to the room, grinning as he heard the fall of the two voices inside.

"We'll let her terrorize some staff members for a few minutes, if she's not back in that time, then I'll go and rescue them." He winked at the girls, before leaning back against the door, half listening to their conversation, but mostly taking the time to just pause and properly take in what was going to happen. It seemed as though Grace would be happy for Mia to stay with Connie, perhaps even happy for him to stay with them too. Having Mia around might just prove to Grace that she wasn't going to be abandoned.

He heard her heels clicking down the ward before she came to the door of the side room, and as she opened the door he moved closer to the bed, the two girls looking up to watch as Connie replaced Mia's notes by the bed.

"Okay Mia, tomorrow morning the surgeons are going to operate, and you are going to feel a lot better. Someone is going to come in a minute to give you some medicine which will make you quite sleepy, but I promise that we'll all still be here when you wake up, okay?" Mia nodded, and Grace reached over to squeeze the girl's hand. Connie then looked to Jacob and mouthed to him, and he nodded in reply before beckoning to Grace to follow him out of the door.

"Come on, we'll come back in a minute. I need you to help me find your Mum something to eat, you know what she's like." Grace grinned, and waved a quick goodbye to Mia before closing the door behind her. Connie moved then to the chair that Grace had been occupying, placing her bag on her lap and watching as Mia turned to look at her.

"Close your eyes, open your hands."

Mia did as she was told, and Connie smiled as she took out the pair of shoes from her bag.

"Open!" Connie smiled. She'd missed doing this with Grace.

Mia gasped at the shoes, staring at them in silence for a long time before she lifted her big eyes to Connie. "For me?"

"For you." Connie nodded. "For when you're all better. Now you don't have to try on mine because you have some all of your own."

Mia hugged the shoes tightly to her chest, closing her eyes. "Uncle Jacob said you don't let anyone touch your shoes. Not even Grace?"

"Not even Grace." Connie confirmed, stroking hair back from Mia's face. "Grace is having a hard time at the moment, a bit like you, so I was hoping you might like to be friends."

"Does that mean I might come to your house for sleepovers?" Mia asked hopefully. "Maybe you could show me all of your shoes."

Connie smiled at this and was unable to resist leaning forward to drop a kiss to the girl's forehead. "I promise that when you're better you and Grace can have a sleepover, and I will show you all my shoes. And if you're really brave when they give you that injection soon, I will let you touch my very favourite pair."

Mia smiled, and when the nurse came in to inject her, she put on her bravest face, and soon her eyelids began to grow heavy. "Will you tell...Uncle Jacob…" She attempted, but whatever she wanted to say was lost in sleep.


	23. Chapter 23

A little while later, Jacob and Grace arrived back at the room to see Mia fast asleep, Connie sitting beside her. She turned her head as she heard them and stood, embracing Grace and looking over her head to smile gratefully at Jacob.

"How are you feeling?"

"Really good, Mum. Does this mean I don't have to go to school tomorrow?" Jacob gave a small chuckle, which was then followed by an exclamation as the coffee he was holding spilled over the hole in the lid and spilled onto his hand.

"Do you need a doctor, Jacob?" Grace turned around in her mother's arms to wink at Jacob, and he looked from Grace to Connie, bewildered. He didn't reply, but put the coffee and biscuits down on the table in the corner of the room and took the chair next to his niece's side, stretching an arm out which Grace accepted, taking his hand as he brought her to stand, leaning against his chair.

"Thank you for coming, Grace." Behind him, Connie lowered her head and smiled, watching as Jacob spoke quietly to Grace. She then heard him as he explained what she had spoken to Jacob about only hours earlier. How Mia would, after her operation, be coming to stay with them for a while. At this, she brought her head up, and stepped forward, unsure as to what her daughter's reaction would be.

Grace was silent for a moment but then surprised both of them with a nod. "I think it will do us all good to have someone young around the place."

"Oh, because you're so old?" Connie asked with a smile.

"Not me..." Grace offered, laughing when Connie swatted her leg with a magazine before releasing a long yawn she'd been trying to keep in to stop either adult saying she would need to leave. Instead though, a few minutes later she found herself lying on a mattress on the ground, her head in her mother's lap as Connie stroked her hair, both of their eyes soon shutting with exhaustion.

Jacob kept himself awake for as long as he could, alternating between watching Mia and Connie. Had the woman who'd been so reluctant to enter into a relationship with him and so quick to jump away when the going got tough, really agreed to help him raise a child she'd only just met?

...

"J-dog, wake up. We have breakfast!"

"J-dog?" Jacob questioned as he opened the eyes that felt dry and itchy from lack of sleep.

"I decided you need a nickname too, so I'm working through a few to decide what works." Grace offered as she pushed a bag of food into his hands. "Mum picked it, so it's probably healthy and tiny. Sorry."

"Where is your mum?" Jacob asked with a frown.

"Yelling at Mia's doctor next door. She paid me twenty pounds for agreeing to never repeat the words that she used when she saw him ever again." Grace bit into her apple and looked with a wrinkled nose down at the granola bar she had picked for breakfast.

...

"She needs that operation, this morning."

"I'm sorry, but we're short staffed, there is no-one able to perform that operation at this time-"

"She could lose her leg!"

She stood, hands on her hips, arguing with the consultant in the room next to Mia's. He knew who she was, most people around here had heard by now that she was in the building, and he did his best to try and keep control over the situation.

"I'm sorry, but I have no other options-"

"Oh for goodness' sake! I'll do it!"

"I don't think that's appropriate, Mrs Beauchamp-"

"Why not? I'm the best damn surgeon in this hospital currently, and I'm not a relation. I don't see a problem."

"I'm afraid I can't-"

"I think you'll find-"

"Connie..." She turned around as she felt a strong hand at her waist, and stopped speaking. "He's right, Con. You can't operate on Mia, you've barely slept-"

"Jacob, I'm fine." She shrugged his arm away, and turned back to face the consultant, who mirrored as best he could the forceful stare that she aimed at him. "Right. I want her transferred to Holby. Mia is having that operation this morning."

"Mrs Beauchamp, you don't have the authority to-"

"Oh, I think you'll find I do." Her tone was cold, and determined. She wasn't going to back down.


	24. Chapter 24

"...Well you will need the guardian's permission to take her, and-" The consultant began.

"She has it. Whatever she thinks is best I will agree with." Jacob held out the form his mother had had delivered, naming him as Mia's guardian.

The consultant looked between them for a long time and then shook his head in annoyance. "Fine, take her back to Holby, but from what I've heard they're as short staffed and busy as we are." With that, he signed the consent forms Connie had been brandishing and then stormed from the room.

"I'll go and organise transport for her, and then one of us will have to drive back with Grace and one of us will have to go with Mia. I need to call Hanssen as well to organise a private room for her, and a theatre-" Connie was cut off then by Jacob dropping a gentle kiss to her lips. He pulled away and studied her face before kissing her again.

"Thank you, Connie." Jacob offered softly when they finally separated.

"Don't thank me until you've seen the state of Holby. St James still has restricted intake, and apparently emergency is still over-run…" As she was listing her current worries, she was silenced by firm hands on her shoulders.

"One thing at a time. First, we fix Mia, and then we fix the department."

...

"Mum, you are not making me go back to school."

"Don't worry, I had no plans to grace them with your moody, sleep deprived presence today." She glanced across to her daughter, who sat in the passenger seat. They had agreed that Jacob should go with Mia, just in case anything happened then it was his right to be there more than Connie's, and Jacob had promised to meet them there so Grace had agreed to drive with her mother. Unbeknownst to Connie, Jacob had made Grace promise to keep an eye on her for him, and Grace had agreed to that also.

"Grace, are you sure you're okay with-"

"Mum. It's all fine. I promise." She rolled her eyes before settling back in her seat, looking out at the cars which they sped past, her mother's face firmly set on the now familiar road in front of her.

"It does mean that you will be spending all day in the ED though."

"That's fine. I want to stay with Mia." At this, Connie smiled. The attachment Grace had established with Mia was quite astonishing. However, this smile quickly fell as her daughter spoke again.

"Will I be able to see Zoe today, Mum?"

"...Zoe's gone, sweetheart. She resigned, and she's moved to Michigan to work with an old colleague." Connie replied carefully.

Grace turned to her with a frown. "You didn't tell me that. Is that where you had to go? To see her off?"

Connie let out a sigh. She knew she had to tell Grace the truth now, because leaving it even longer would only make things worse. "I didn't go and see Zoe, Grace. I told you that because I was worried the truth might upset you."

"Why?" Grace's voice sounded low and threatened anger.

"...I was at the funeral of Mia's father. They were involved in an accident last week and he died a few days later." Connie replied honestly. She hadn't gone there with the intention of getting back with Jacob.

"With Jacob?" Grace asked warily.

"With Jacob. He came into work, but he wasn't coping well and then his mother called to see where he was. Joseph, that's Mia's dad, was Jacob's twin, but they hadn't seen each other for months, and I think Jacob's not dealing with that very well right now. I went with him only to support him, because I thought it was important he go to the funeral." When Grace didn't speak, Connie just found herself going further and further into explaining what had happened on the day, including her own tears and when she'd met Mia.


	25. Chapter 25

"So you were with him that night. When I went to Grandma's." These weren't questions, they were calculated statements.

"Yes." Connie looked at Grace before turning her eyes back to the road, her chest feeling tight.

"You had sex." Grace turned to face her mother, whose mouth opened and then closed, after deciding that a response wasn't really required.

Grace turned to face the window, and Connie became aware of how hard she was gripping the steering wheel. "Did you..." Grace paused, thinking again about what she was going to say before continuing, her voice quiet. "Did you do it because you were sad or because you love him?" She knew Jacob was in love with her mum, as did Mia. But Connie had never told Grace how she felt, unlike Jacob had done, on many an occasion, with Mia.

Connie was stunned. And angry. How dare Grace suggest that she slept with Jacob but didn't love him? How dare she put them through what she had, forcing her to end her relationship with Jacob so that she wouldn't leave to go and live with Sam, and turn it back in her face?

"You have no idea."

"Do you love him?"

"OF COURSE I LOVE HIM." Her sudden outburst shocked herself, as well as her daughter. But now she had started, she found she couldn't stop. "You left. You went to live with your dad, and I was on my own, Grace. So many bad things happened when you were gone, but you know what, none of that matters now. Because when Jacob arrived, he helped me to get through it. He helped me when no-one else was either around to, or wanted to. He helped me to get you back, and I thought that after that, everything was going to be perfect."

She expected something back from her daughter, then. Tears or yelling, she wasn't sure, but the silence she was met with was worse. It took them another half an hour to get to Holby, and the drive was done in painfully loud silence. When Connie pulled into her usual space, Grace climbed from the car with her bag, not making eye contact with her mother, before she followed her into the building.

Having left Mia to get to know Rita who had met them on the way in, Jacob was waiting out the front of the hospital, but his smile of greeting fell when he saw the expression on both their faces. "What's-" He attempted, but Connie just shook her head and walked straight past him, worried she might cry if she was to stop.

Grace slowed and came to a stop next to Jacob as he watched her mother stalk into the building. "I'm sorry about your brother."

Jacob turned to her and tried to read the expression on her face. Connie must have told her she'd been with him. "Thank you." They too then stood in silence until Jacob cleared her throat. "We'd better get inside, Mia asked me to escort you to her room as soon as you got here."

"Wait." Grace grabbed his arm then with force. "I can't go in."

"Why not?" Jacob frowned. When nothing was forthcoming, he asked, "What happened in the car?"

Grace's eyes suddenly filled with tears then and her breathing began to quicken. "I think she hates me."

"Your mother? She doesn't hate you Grace, she loves you more than anything in the world, and she just...struggles to talk about things like that. She wouldn't have fought for you to stay, and she wouldn't have ended it with me if she didn't love you a whole lot." Jacob tried to soothe her, but Grace shook her head.

"But she loves you. She really loves you, and I made her give that up."

"Just come inside and talk to-"

"I can't talk to her! We don't talk! We argue or we have fun, we don't do proper talking!" Grace replied in a yell, getting looks as he shoulder's started to rise with the effort it took to breathe.

"Hey, hey it's okay, firecracker." He pulled Grace towards him in a hug, and rubbed her back, soothing her as she began to relax. "How about I talk to your Mum once Mia's gone to theatre?"

"Thanks, J-dog." He laughed before letting her go, and walked behind her into the ED; they'd agreed to take her there as an emergency case due to the level of infection, before her theatre slot.


	26. Chapter 26

Meanwhile, Connie stood in the ladies', in front of the mirror above the sink. She had seen Rita on her way in, Mia was due in theatre in twenty minutes, and she had already won over a number of the nurses. She heard the door open and quickly withdrew from the sink, patting down her coat before turning around to see Robyn standing in the doorway, her attempt to hide her surprises failing spectacularly.

"Mrs Beauchamp? I... I didn't know you were... Are you okay?" She came in and closed the door, on noticing that Connie's eyes were red and smudged, and that she looked pale and tired. This wasn't the Mrs Beauchamp she knew, who presented herself impeccably and would have launched into defence mode straight away at her question.

"It's just been... A mare of a few days. Thank you, Robyn." She smiled slightly before passing the nurse, and left, heading straight in the direction of her office.

...

"Great minds." Jacob smiled at her as he approached the office from the other direction, frowning when Connie just glanced at him and lowered her head, quickening her pace to get inside the office. Jacob made it to the office a second after her to find the door being shut in his face. He hesitated then, hand on the door handle. Maybe he should leave her for a few minutes? No. She was just like Grace, and he knew the state she could get herself into in a few minutes. Pushing open the door, Jacob found Connie sat in on the sofa, her head in her hands. He approached and silently sat beside her, pulling her into him. After a moment's resistance, Connie buried her face in his top as Jacob rubbed her back, much as he'd done for Grace.

Connie knew she'd lost Grace. For good this time. She'd picked the man in front of her over her own daughter and was now here, crying into his shirt.

As if Jacob had read her mind, he suddenly spoke. "She doesn't hate you, Con. She thinks you hate her."

"What?" Connie asked, pulling back as she tried to brush hair from her face, but it was stuck to the tears that had wet her cheeks.

"Grace told me she's worried that you hate her because she asked you to choose between her and me."

"Why would she think that?" Connie sounded irritated and stood up, but Jacob grabbed her hand to stop her leaving the room.

"She said that sometimes you argue and sometimes you're friends, but that you never talk properly, so she doesn't know what to expect from you."

"Why could she tell you all this and not me?" Connie asked quietly, sounding so vulnerable Jacob wanted to stand up and hug her again, but instead he stayed where he was.

"You're so worried about hurting her that you're giving her adult decisions to make, and when she makes the wrong decision then you both argue. She's twelve, Connie, and she needs to be a child. She needs rules and discipline." Jacob offered gently.

Before Connie could reply, there was a knock on the door and Rita looked in. "They're about to take Mia up to theatre and she wants to see you both."

...

"Am I going to lose my leg?"

Having asked the nurse to leave the room, Connie and Jacob sat at either side of Mia's bed, Jacob holding one of her hands and Connie stroking her hair between her fingers.

"I can't say for certain, Mia." Jacob looked across at her, hearing the break in her voice as she spoke. "But I think you've got every chance, we got you in here and this is the best place. But whatever happens, it will be okay." She said the last bit quietly, doing her best to convince herself so that Mia would believe her. Jacob squeezed Mia's hand as her head rolled to look at him, her eyes teary.

"I'm scared."

"I know, I know. But we're here okay, and Grace is just outside with Rita." Jacob looked at Connie but she didn't meet his eyes, focussed intently on Mia.

"We need to take Mia through now." A different nurse quickly opened the door to speak and then promptly shut it, and Jacob eased himself out of his chair before moving around to stand behind Connie. He placed a hand on her shoulder, before kissing her head and helping her up.

"We'll stay outside of the theatre. And we'll be right here when you come out." Connie pressed a gently kiss to Mia's head, before reluctantly releasing her other hand from the bed, lacing her fingers in Jacob's as they walked from the room, to see Grace sat on a chair outside with Rita.

"There we go, Grace. I'll see you in a bit, okay?" Rita nodded to Connie before motioning for her to come with her to the lift.

"Rita, what-"

"Connie, the department is a mess." She held her hands up, helplessly. "I'm sorry to ask, but we really need you to come downstairs."


	27. Chapter 27

"I can't lea-" Connie went to tell Rita she couldn't leave Grace or Mia, or Jacob for that matter, but Grace was suddenly at her elbow.

"It's okay, mum. You hate waiting anyway, and it's a mess down there." Grace didn't meet her mother's eye, but spoke with determination.

Connie glanced at Jacob, who offered a smile, before she looked down at Grace. "I'll sort out some more staff and then I will be right back, okay?" When Grace nodded, to both Rita and Grace's surprise, she suddenly pulled her daughter into a tight hug and dropped a kiss to her hair. "I love you, Gracie."

"I love you, too." Grace replied, her voice muffled by Connie's top but it was heard loud and clear by her mother.

"We'll let you know when Mia gets out if you're not back." Jacob offered as they finally separated. He put a hand on Grace's shoulder, and the last thing Connie saw as the lift doors shut was Grace cuddling into his side as they grinned at one another.

"That was-" Rita began, but jumped when Connie snapped her reply.

"I thought you said you could cope. Why did you say you could cope if you can't." As Rita opened her mouth to defend herself Connie shook her head. "I don't want to hear your excuses. I'll be in my office trying to sort out your mess. Get someone to bring me in a list of what needs to be done."

It was almost as if they had wanted her out of the way. She couldn't deny that she was angry, for it had been her to have had Mia transferred, and had fought for her to have this operation here, at Holby. The absolute last thing she wanted to be doing was sorting out what others should be capable of doing.

"Connie, I'm sorry-"

"Stop apologising. I don't want to hear it, I'm here now." Connie held out her hand and Rita quickly came to the desk and gave her several pieces of paper and a list of agency numbers. She then left, closing the door behind her, and hurried off to cubicles in the direction of the several young children she could hear screaming.

"No, I want them here now! Why would I be calling you, telling you we're very near to declaring a black alert, if I want staff in three hours' time?" She pushed her fringe up into her hands, glancing every so often at the window where she could see the stairs, but neither Jacob or Grace had come down in the last hour. "You know what, don't bother." She slammed the phone down, and scanned the list Rita had given her.

The situation was completely out of control. She would have to go to Hanssen for the second time that day, and forcibly make him realise that the department was being driven rapidly into the ground. Some doctors had been working the equivalent of triple shifts, with meagre breaks in between influxes of patients, and the lack of room was creating hazards that they simply could not afford to bypass any longer.

Her phone vibrated under a pile of sheets, just as she was about to reach for it, the man she had been considering going to shout at moments earlier entered her office. He surveyed the scene before him: the Clinical Lead who had barely slept, was awaiting personal news from a theatre upstairs, and was fraught with stress, before opening his mouth to speak.

"I-"

"You can stop right there."

"I beg your pardon?" Hansen stared at the woman who pushed herself from her chair and squared herself against him.

"I have been gone for less than forty eight hours. My staff have repeatedly asked you to sort out more bodies, but all you seem concerned with is dealing with the mess this chaos is causing upstairs. Has it never occurred to you that their mess is going to continue to grow as long as it's like this down here? We're on the verge of closing our doors, and I will not have my staff run into the ground just to make your budget work! We need more staff NOW!"


	28. Chapter 28

Upstairs, Jacob hung up and gave a sigh. Grace had fallen asleep, so he'd called Connie to see how things were going downstairs, but the call had gone unanswered. He was worried he'd made the situation between her and Grace worse by seeming to side with the twelve year old, but he was caught between a rock and a hard place. To work with Connie, he needed Grace's acceptance, but to be with Connie…

"Mia's out of surgery." A nurse appeared with a smile. "She's just been moved to the recovery ward and she's slowly coming around. Everything went well, but as I'm sure you're aware, time will tell whether she needs more surgery. One of you can see her now, but not both, I'm afraid."

Jacob nodded, shaking Grace's shoulder gently. "Grace, she's awake!"

"Can I see her?" Grace asked as she sat up, rubbing her dry eyes.

"Not until she's out of recovery, but how about you go downstairs and tell your mother personally. You two need to have a chat."He was met with an expression that was very much likened to her mother's when he said something completely idiotic.

"She isn't going to listen. I've told you, she can't do talking."

"I spoke to her earlier Grace, and-"

"She isn't going to listen to me!"

"Grace." Jacob placed his hands on her shoulders, and looked directly at her. "Give her a chance?" She raised an eyebrow at him, and he sighed. "Let's have a quick practice."

"Of what?"

"Right, I'll be your mum." He withdrew his hands from her shoulders, and mimed flicking his hair over his shoulders, then fixed his hands on his hips with an accompanying hard stare. Grace burst out laughing, and Jacob couldn't hold the position for much longer before he started laughing too.

"You need to go and see Mia. I'll go and find Mum."

"Alright, firecracker." He rubbed her shoulder encouragingly before calling the lift for her, and waited until she got in before heading to the recovery room.

The ED was in such disarray that Grace felt overwhelmed as she walked into the throng of people. "Have you seen my mum?" She asked a passing agency nurse, but unaware of who her mother was, they just apologised and continued walking. "Have you seen my mum?" She asked Noel, but he just shook his head apologetically. "Have you seen my mum?" She asked Rita, but Grace didn't hear the reply because the nurse spoke too quietly and the room was so loud. She thought then she saw a glimpse of her mother and rushed towards her, only to find it was a drunk woman who loomed over her. Grace darted in the other direction and then spun around in a circle, unable to see her mother. "Mummy?" She called, though her voice made little noise as panic began to overwhelm her.

…

"Hello, you." Jacob smiled as he approached Mia's bedside.

"Sore." She whimpered, trying desperately to keep her eyes open though they felt so heavy.

"We're just giving her something for the pain now." A nurse reassured Jacob as he stroked the girl's hair.

"I want my mummy." Mia cried softly, her tears rolling down her temples to disappear into her hair.

"Hey, hey it's okay. I'm here. And mummy's watching you too, from where she is." He brushed away the tears which trickled down the side of her face and onto her pillow, whispering to her comfortingly until she stopped crying. Her eyes began to flicker shut again, and he continued to stroke her hair, smiling sadly, as she fell asleep. He turned to look at the clock on the far wall of the room, hoping that Connie and Grace had managed to reconcile, and after all this time, they would become a family.


	29. Chapter 29

"GRACE!" Connie ran quickly, pushing aside the crowds as she glimpsed her daughter stood against a wall, searching frantically about her, for a person, for a door, anything that would help her to get away from all of these people. Connie enveloped her in a tight hug, manoeuvring her away from the waiting area and into the quieter corridor on which her office was located. She quickly sat her down on the sofa, before closing the door and sitting next to her, bringing her against her and rubbing her arms reassuringly. "It's okay, I'm here. You're safe in here, sweetheart, I know it's manic out there, I'm so sorry. What did you think you were doing, Gracie?"

"I... I came to find you, to tell you about Mia-"

"She's out of theatre?" Grade nodded in response before falling back against Connie's side. "Is she okay? Why didn't Jacob just-"

"It went well, and he did, Mum. You didn't answer." Connie looked at her daughter and sighed, before bringing her to sit with her legs over her lap, and she held her close as she stroked her hair.

"I'm sorry." Connie whispered, and Grace closed her eyes momentarily before swallowing and pulling back, her arms still wrapped around her mother.

"I'm sorry too, Mum."

"Oh Gracie… I've been so focussed on making you happy, and showing your father that I could look after you that I think I stopped seeing you, but I promise, from now on everything will be better. You're my baby girl, and I've messed you around so often that I just hope you can forgive me and let us try again." Connie spoke softly as she rested her head on top of her daughter's.

"It won't just be us anymore though, mum. It will be Jacob and Mia, too, won't it?" Grace asked, her heart rate finally slowing as her mother rocked her gently.

Connie wanted to deny it, to say Grace was her only priority, but now she took a breath before replying, "Yes, but I'll tell you what we'll do. Every night before you go to bed, we will have a proper talk, okay? You can tell me everything that happened in your day and anything that's worrying you."

"What about if you're working?" Grace asked quietly.

"Well, have you seen Elle, Jacob's friend?" Grace nodded. "She's agreed to help me with my job, so neither of us will have so much work to do. I will be able to get out of here as soon as my shift finishes." Connie replied with a smile, though when she'd yelled this at Hanssen earlier it had come as a shock to both of them.

"That sounds perfect, but we'll see how it goes." Grace offered softly.

Connie knew the only way she'd be able to prove to her daughter that she meant it was with time, so for now she just dropped a kiss to her head. "We will, but for now how about we go and see Mia? I know patients in recovery are only allowed one visitor, but I think the formidable Connie Beauchamp can get around that, don't you?"

"I heard Jacob telling Elle you're a pussy cat, really." Grace smiled.

"Oh, did he now?" Grace laughed at her mother's expression, before slipping off her mother's legs and helping her to stand.

"Mum... What about work now?"

"Oh Grace, they'll manage. I've already shouted at the Swede'-"

"The Swede?" Connie's eyes widened as she realised what she had said out loud. "I think I'll be needing at least ten pounds not to mention that to his face if I see him..."

"You're a cheeky madam, you are." She pushed Grace out of her office, giggling, and they took the stairs so as to avoid the crowds in reception. Jacob was waiting outside of the recovery room, the worry clearly evident on his face.

"There you are. You had me worried, firecracker..."

"I'm fine, J-dog-"

"J-dog?" Connie raised her eyebrows at Jacob and he shrugged, grinning. He pushed the door open, ushering Grace in before him, and as Connie made to follow her, he caught her hand and pulled her back.

"So?"

"Thank you." She whispered with a small smile, before reaching slightly to kiss his cheek, removing her hand from his. She then went into the room, moving straight around to the stand by the bed which held all of Mia's medication. Jacob closed the door behind him and took one of the seats, the only sound being the steady bleep of Mia's monitor and the occasional clicking of Connie's heels on the floor.

"Mum, when will she wake up?"

"Not for a while yet, darling. She might speaking tomorrow morning, but she's going to need a lot of rest before she's ready to come home." Behind her, Jacob smiled as she unconsciously spoke of her house as their 'home.' Grace noticed it too, and turned to smile at Jacob, slipping her thumbs up as a sign of positive outcome, and he mirrored the gesture back at her.

 _ **THE END**_

 **Thank you so, so much to everyone who has read/reviewed this fic! It was so much fun to write, and there may be more on the way... ;) x**


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